Three playlists have been added since Spotify launched in the country to celebrate Ugandan music, highlighting a wide range of talent available here.
KAMPALA | NOW THEN DIGITAL — In celebration of Ugandan music, Spotify has added three playlists that specifically highlight the variety of musical talent available in the country since its launch.
- With three playlists added since its launch, Spotify has celebrated Ugandan music. These playlists present the diversity of Ugandan music talent.
- Afro-Soul and R&B originating from Uganda are featured on the latest playlist, Mutima, which means “heart” in Luganda.
- In the second playlist, Kidandali Parte, which translates as Ragga/Dancehall Party, is a dancehall-inspired playlist.
- Make In Uganda, the final playlist, showcases the rich culture and local talent of Uganda.
Music streaming platform Spotify has officially been available in Uganda for just over a year and in that time, they have implemented measures in line with their vision to export local music to global audiences.
One way of ensuring this is through playlisting, which exposes artists to the 422 million active Spotify users, thus broadening their fan base.
Three playlists have been added to the Spotify Ugandan Music section since the launch that specifically reflect the wide range of music talent available in Uganda.
The newest playlist, Mutima translates to heart in Luganda and is focused on R&B and Afro-Soul music originating from Uganda.
This playlist sits in the R&B hub and Mood spaces, available in Africa and the rest of the world to all Spotify users. If you are feeling a little mellow and would like to get your spirits up, then this is definitely the playlist for you.
The second playlist is Kidandali Parte which in the local translation means Ragga/Dancehall Party and as the name suggests, is a dancehall-inspired playlist.
While the Ugandan artists featured on the playlist are influenced by Dancehall, they have added their own flavor to the music, making it uniquely Ugandan.
You better get your dancing shoes on because the party does not stop when this playlist is on.
The final playlist is Made In Uganda, which showcases the country’s rich culture and homegrown talent. This playlist is not genre-specific, instead, you will find the hottest hits making the airwaves in and out of the country.
And with the new Spotify lyrics feature, anyone can sing along like a local.
To further underline its commitment to supporting the local music scene, Spotify recently collaborated with Maurice Kirya, who is one of Uganda’s foremost artists, on a Made in Uganda Playlist Takeover.
His takeover included his top 50 Ugandan songs. This collaboration was part of the promotion for his latest album, The Road To Kirya.
These three playlists are available to both Freemium and Premium Spotify users and are the first of many to come.
The latest International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) report shows that the music industry in Sub-Saharan Africa grew by 9.6% in 2021, largely driven by streaming.
With companies such as Spotify expanding to the region, this growth is bound to be even higher in the coming years.
About Spotify
Spotify transformed music listening forever when it launched in 2008.
Discover, manage and share over 82 million tracks, including more than 3.6 million podcast titles, for free, or upgrade to Spotify Premium to access exclusive features for music including improved sound quality and an on-demand, offline, and ad-free music listening experience.
Today, Spotify is the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service with 422m users, including 182m subscribers, across 183 markets.
